Rise of Dark Matter
by SSJ-Sonic
Summary: Dark Matter has been defeated, thanks to the efforts of Meta Knight and Kirby, but such peace never lasts long as Popstar is threatened once more as Dark Matter's servants work to revive him, can Meta Knight prevent the resurrection? Read bio for rating
1. Prolouge

--A Message from the Author--

Greetings all readers, you may or may not remember who I am, so I'll introduce myself first. I am known as SSJ-Sonic, a former author here, pleased to meet you. You may or may not of heard of me, and you may know me as a pretty active member of the Kirby's Rainbow Resort Forums (under the username Crystal Metaknight, by the way), or as a somewhat active member of the Bomberman Board, or by here, as a author of a handful of fanfics. For those of you that may remember me as the author, you're probably thinking "It's been more than X years since you wrote a story here! Why are you writing another one now?" I'll answer this question right away.

It has come to my attention that, despite how long ago I finished my last stories here, I'm still receiving some reviews on those stories, mainly Meta Knight's Apprentice and, to a lesser extent, Sonic Meets Mario and Kirby. Some of these reviews were great and seemed to like the story they reviewed, while some of them were... not as thrilled about them, so to speak. Nevertheless, it would seem that newer people still read my stories, despite their age. You may say that I was inspired to write again and I have decided to once again type up a new fresh story straight from the imagination of yours truly.

So, I bet you are all thinking "Well then, what's this new story about?" I noticed that some of those who read through Meta Knight's Apprentice have suggested me to write about one of the main protagonists, Crystallis, and what he did after that story. I decided to read through the entire story once more and I noted that I wrote how Chris did not participate in the battle against Dark Matter. I thought about that will be based on Crystallis' journeys that take place after Meta Knight's Apprentice, but I drifted away from that idea and decided for the current storyline I'm writing. Do not worry about the characters, for at least some of the old cast will return in this story while new characters are introduced as well. You have my word on it that you'll be at least be interested in the new characters that will be introduced from this story.

So, without further ado, the prologue for my new story, The Rise of Dark Matter…

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It has been a year since the war with Dark Matter ended in victory due to the brave efforts of the well-known heroes Meta Knight and Kirby. Meta Knight is seen walking along the tides of the beach near his fortress at Orange Ocean. It was late in the afternoon, so the sun was seen glimmering form the vast ocean, a very beautiful sight. As Meta Knight walked, something caught his eye, a bluish creature similar to himself off in the distance.

"No… could it be… Chris?"

Meta Knight pondered to himself as he ran towards the creature. He caught a glimpse of the creature as he dashed. He was a sky blue color with armored shoes and shoulder pads. He also wore a green mantle and worn white gloves and he had a very familiar feature: a teal headband on his forehead. Meta Knight instantly recognized who he was, it was Chris, the very same one he trained, and they, along with Kirby and the crew of the former Halberd II, searched and battled for the legendary Star Stones. The two swordsmen gazed at each other for a long time, not saying a word.

"Chris, is that you? It does my heart good to see you once more." Meta Knight greeted.

"It's good to see you again, sir." Chris returned the greeting. "I've heard that you and your friends ended the war with Dark Matter. Congratulations."

"Yes, we finally defeated Dark Matter after a long and grueling war. Where have you been? You've been gone for over a year, you know."

"Yes I have. I've been searching for answers that I cannot seem to find."

"What do you mean by that?"

Chris sighed as he sat down near the ocean's tide line. "I've been trying to find out more about myself. Who am I? Who were my parents? Why was I given that Star Stone? Why did the Shadow Sword have some type of interest in me? The answers seem to be escaping from me…"

"I see… Is that why you didn't participate in the battle?"

"That's not the only reason… It seemed as though I was being hunted down by servants of Dark Matter and I had to keep moving to avoid getting caught."

"Really…? Was this during or after the war?"

"They seemed to have stopped following me a little before I heard of your victory over Dark Matter."

Meta Knight nodded and appeared to have understood. Chris took some time to notice how Meta Knight didn't change at all since he last saw him. He still had that same sincere look in his eyes and he always understood you, even if you make something sound really different from what you were trying to say. It was almost as though we went back in time to that day he first met him. Meta Knight, during Chris's observation, saw just how much Chris had grown. He saw the same look of determination and kindness in his eyes and Chris reminded the older knight of himself when he was his age. He also noticed he still had his brother's claymore, Rukifellth, with him; perhaps as a memento of that day he lost Regulus, or perhaps it was it a way to show Chris that Regulus was watching over him? Nevertheless, he noticed that his sword, that same blue saber, was still wielded by Chris.

"Did you ever find out of the name that sword?" Meta Knight asked out of curiosity. Chris grinned and he then unsheathed his blade.

"I decided to call this saber Frostbite. After its appearance of being a frozen blade and its power to freeze whatever come to contact with it." Chris replied. Meta Knight then noticed the scabbard of the sword was quite frozen.

"Would you like to follow me back to the castle, Chris?"

"I'd be honored to, sir."

Chris jumped onto his Shadow Star and rode up to Meta Knight.

"Care to hop on, sir?"

Meta Knight accepted the ride and hopped on Chris's vehicle and it drove towards Meta Knight's fortress. After about three minutes, Chris parked the Shadow Star inside the stables of Meta Knight's fortress and the two swordsmen walked inside the fortress. Chris saw many familiar faces when he reached inside, including Colonel Dee of the Halberd II and Blade, among others. Colonel Dee ran towards his superior officer and quickly greeted him with a salute. He was just an average looking Waddle Dee with a sailor's cap on his head. Meta Knight chuckled and saluted back to the energetic Waddle Dee. Colonel Dee then looked at Chris and recognized him after a couple of seconds.

"Ah, Chris, welcome back!" Colonel Dee greeted.

"Hello to you as well Colonel." Chris returned the greeting. "How have you been?"

"Great! I'm sure things have been fine to you as well, Chris!"

"But of course. It's good to see you again!"

"Same here," concluded the Colonel as he ran back to attend his duties. The greetings from other old friends were very similar to this one as they continued walking through the corridors of the castle. Chris noticed that the castle didn't change a bit since he left. Meta Knight guided Chris to his office where his second-in-command, Bio Spark, was as well. Bio Spark looked just like the ninja enemies from Kirby Super Star, except he had a katana, in its scabbard; on the left side of his belt and a pouch filled with throwing stars and kunai, among other blades, on the right side. Bio Spark quickly greeted the two of them.

"Welcome back, my lord. Welcome back, Chris." Bio Spark greeted to the two.

"It's good to be back here. Well, Bio Spark, you haven't changed at all!" Chris greeted.

"And you've changed quite a bit yourself." Bio Spark replied.

The three warriors then sat down. Meta Knight sat at his desk next to a large window, Bio Spark on a wooden chair near Meta Knight, and Chris sat on the large sofa across the desk. The trio talked for awhile, mainly about the time during the battle with Dark Matter and everything in between. After a couple of laughs and the various talk about the past, Meta Knight then got a serious tone in his voice.

"Chris, if I may ask, what were you doing during the last battle? I would have thought that you, of all people, would've participated in the final battle." Meta Knight asked. Chris then put on a pondering look on his face, trying to think of how to explain everything since that fateful time long ago.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I do not wish to tell it just yet. I'll tell everything to you one day, just not now." Chris replied, with an uncomfortable look on his face. Meta Knight simply nodded as though he understood everything.

"I understand, Chris. You may tell me about it another day." Meta Knight replied as he turned to gaze at the ocean outside. It was starting to get dark out and the sun was indeed going down. "You must be tired, Chris. Please stay here for the night; you know that you're always welcome to stay here."

"Thank you, sir. I'll accept the offer." Chris replied as he walked off towards the guest room and he quietly closed the door. The two old friends continued to sit in their seats for a while, not exchanging a word to each other. Then after a while, the two friends started to talk to each other.

"Bio Spark, there is something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Yes, milord?"

"You've always been there for me, ready to give your life for me, willing to fight with me no matter what the circumstances..."

Bio Spark could tell that this would be something very important. "That's right, sir. I'm always at your disposal."

Meta Knight took a deep breath as he gazed at Bio Spark. "Have you ever heard of the legend about the Shadow Saber and Celestial Body?"

"…Celestial Body?"

"It's a legendary suit of armor, said to be made of the same materials as the Shadow Saber."

"Really…? Such armor exists?"

"Yes. It is said, in legend, that the armor was destroyed by the sword of a warrior who fell from the heavens to combat the demon who wielded the Shadow Saber and Celestial Body."

"Why are you bringing this up, sir?"

"The Shadow Saber and the Celestial Body are said to be required to revive a great evil in the land. Or, if one has the ability to, create a sword and armor with abilities like the cursed gear…"

"Do you mean that…?"

"There is the possibility that the Shadow Saber and the Celestial Body can be recreated and revive Dark Matter…"

"What makes you so certain that there is such a possibility?"

"Chris told me he was pursued by servants of Dark Matter, until a little before he heard of our victory. They may have gone searching for an alchemist or something to recreate the weapons…"

"It is possible…. Why else would they seize their hunt for Chris?"

Meta Knight looked towards the ocean once more and sighed. He only learned of this possibility for only a couple of days, thanks to a book he read in his library. Another war with Dark Matter might arise once more… Bio Spark stood next him.

"Don't worry, sir. We'll be ready for him to come once more…"

Meta Knight shook his head. "No, we should stop him from even reviving at all. But the question is where do we search?"

The two friends then pondered for what seemed like a very long time. However, they then felt a vibration and a blinding flash of light was seen outside the window. The two were blinded for awhile, and they looked outside after being able to see again.

"What was that!" Meta Knight exclaimed. Bio Spark then pointed towards where the flash came from, it was an attack at Castle Dedede! Meta Knight, wasting no time, grabbed and put on his cloak and grabbed his sword, Galaxia.

"Bio Spark, gather some of the others! We're going to investigate this at once! Tell the rest to be on guard duty and watch over the castle!" Meta Knight ordered. Bio Spark nodded and gathered Blade, Simirror, and a select number of Axe Knights, Mace Knights, and Trident Knights and they set off towards Castle Dedede. Chris, now awaken due to the bright flash of light and vibrations, equipped himself with his armor and weapons, and followed the investigation group…

A/N – Next chapter will be a battle at King Dedede's castle! Who is responsible for the attack at Castle Dedede? Comment if you want to, and please leave some constructive crtisism for me, I'd like to improve on my writing as much as I can. Well, I'll be off now, expect chapters 1 and 2 soon. I already finished writing them, but i'm going to read them over again and make I don't leave any mistakes. Well then, farwell for now. (disappears)


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: Here it is the battle at Castle Dedede! I wonder if Meta-Knight and his companions will reach the castle in time to save the survivors. Just read on to find out for yourselves.

Also, swears are introduced in this chapter, uncensored for more of a professional look, so for those of you kiddies reading this, I highly suggest you stop reading this. This chapter also mentions violence

But anyway, onto chapter 1 of Rise of Dark Matter!

Oh, and if any of you are confused about Chris and Crystallis, they are both the same person. Chris is just Crystallis's nickname.

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Rise of Dark Matter

Chapter 1

As Meta Knight's small group dashed toward Castle Dedede, they heard the sounds of steel clashing, the screams of soldiers dying, the sounds of battle! They had to hurry; otherwise, there'd be no one to help from the battle.

"What's goin' on 'round here!" yelled King Dedede who walked towards the battle at the entrance of the castle. The captain of the Royal Guard, a Waddle Doo named Eric, accompanied him.

"It's dangerous out here, milord! Let the Castle Guard handle it!" Eric pleaded.

"Are ya keddin'? I want to know just what the hell is goin' on in my castle! If there's a fight goin' on, I'm gonna join in!" King Dedede replied.

The young Waddle Doo knew just how stubborn his king is, and insisted that he'd at least accompany him. Eric was just a pretty generic Waddle Doo, except he fancied a musketeer hat on his head and had a rapier, although he rarely used it. The two walked towards the battlegrounds and saw the leader of the Castle Guard, Sir Charles, along with some of his most loyal soldiers, fighting off several strange demonic foes. They had a pure black armor-like hide and had glowing white eyes, they were almost like phantoms. Sir Charles, a Sword Knight in white armor who fancied a battle axe, charged at the group of demons with the ferocity of an angered bull. The Castle Guard also charged at the enemies, among them a newly recruited Waddle Dee wearing a cap, wielding a glaive named Will. This was the first time Will ever fought and he was naturally scared. He didn't know what to do! He was about to be attacked by a nearby demon right when Sir Charles pushed the young boy out of the way and swung his axe deep into the demon's chest. Charles looked at Will and gave him the "thumbs up" sign. Will highly respected Charles and wanted to be just like him. All of a sudden, a demonic wolf like beast ran at Charles! Charles struggled getting his heavy axe out of the demon carcass as the beast ran closer towards him. Will then ran in front of Charles and stabbed the beast in the chest just as the wolf lunged at Charles. Will pulled the glaive out of the dead wolf and looked at Charles, giving him the thumbs up sign. Charles smiled underneath his helmet. Shortly after this scene, King Dedede showed up, along with Eric.

"Just what the hell is goin' on here!" King Dedede yelled at Charles.

"You majesty, these demons appeared out of nowhere shortly after that big explosion and started to slaughter the Castle Guard! There's only a few of us left and we're fighting valiantly, but we're far outnumbered! I fear this may be the end for us, sir!" Charles explained to Dedede.

"Bah! It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings, Charles! Let's give those demon beasts something to think about!"

"Have you lost your mind, sir!" Eric pleaded. "This is too dangerous for you! We must get you to safety!"

"Tell me, Eric, do ya see any safe places 'round hea! Cuz I certainly don't! We can't avoid this fight, Eric!"

Eric knew it was pointless to argue with Dedede any further, for he did have a point. Eric drew out the thin rapier and stood by Dedede's side. "I'm going to make sure you stay safe, sir!"

"Do as ya please, I'm gonna face those creeps head on!" Dedede concluded as he dashed at the demons with mallet in hand. Eric quickly followed him, thrusting his blade at any demon nearby.

"Lord Meta-Knight! Take a look at this, sir!" yelled Blade towards Meta-Knight. Meta-Knight walked over to his subordinate and watched as the battle perused.

"We have to help them before it too late! All forces, on the double! We must reinforce the Castle Guard!" Meta-Knight ordered. All of his soldiers saluted and quickly dashed towards the battlefield. Only then did Meta-Knight notice Crystallis was among his warriors.

"Chris, what are you doing here? I thought you were sleeping at the fortress!" Meta-Knight asked.

"Sir, after that explosion went off, everything in a 10 mile radius must have awakened!" Chris replied.

"…I see your point. Anyway, you don't have to fight with us. You're a guest, guests aren't supposed to fight alongside their host." Meta-Knight insisted.

"I'm fighting with you, no matter what, sir!" Meta-Knight was moved by Chris's loyalty and he allowed him to accompany his troop as the two charged towards the castle!

Sir Charles breathed heavily as he watched the demons coming back once more.

"No, not now! We still haven't recovered from their last assault!"

Will looked at the incoming forces. He couldn't do anything but watch in horror at just how many of them were coming. "There's far too many of them! We can't do this!" Will cried.

"Get a hold of yourself, Will! We're going to survive this!" Charles insisted.

The only ones of the Castle Guard that remained were Charles, Will, and four others. Plus they had the Royal Guard with them, but that only made fifteen more men, which really didn't matter. There must've been a least thirty demon beasts still alive. Charles feared that this may just be the end.

"Charlie boy, don't start acting like all hope is lost now!" yelled a large bugzzy named Cid. He had green skin, wore worn cloth gloves and shoes, and was one of the remaining Castle Guard still around. Charles looked at the big bugzzy. "We can give them one more good fight before the end!"

Charles nodded. "Friends, let's get ready to give those demons all hell! Let's stand our ground!" All of the remaining Castle Guard cheered and were ready to fight once more! Dedede was near Charles and got into a battle position.

"Castle Guard! Royal Guard! We attack NOW!" Dedede ordered and then the two groups of fighters charged at the enemy! However, the warriors soon stopped to see another group of warriors charge at the demons!

"Reinforcements! They must be Meta-Knight's men! We're saved!" exclaimed Charles. The soldiers cheered loudly as they once again continued their charge, now filled with hope! No one noticed that a shooting star was falling towards the battlegrounds….

"Comrades, CHARGE!" Meta-Knight yelled as his legion of Axe Knights, Javelin Knights, and Mace Knights charged towards the enemies! Meta-Knight ran alongside them, as was Chris, Blade, Simirror, and Bio Spark, into the middle of the fray. Chris unsheathed Frostbite as they got into the heat of battle! Chris stabbed a demon and flung him towards another, knocking one down with ease. Bio Spark jumped at a nearby demon and then kicked it in the face three times before performing a roundhouse kick at the demon's face and then he heard the snap of its neck as it fell toward the ground. A Mace Knight swung his large spiked mace around and threw it at demon's chest, instantly killing him. Meta-Knight slashed at a demon heading towards the Mace Knight and defeated him within a matter of seconds. Blade drew out his sword and a dagger and quickly killed a demon with a fury of slashes. Simirror unleashed a fire spell at the nearby demon and burnt him severally. In the middle of the fray, however, a shooting star crashed right into the middle of a demon horde and a pink sphere was seen jump away from it. It was Kirby, the famous Star Warrior! Kirby sucked in a surviving demon, and gained the Dark ability. Kirby now had claws, along with horns, bat-like wings, and a long tail. The battle then continued for a matter of minutes until the last few demons retreated from the battle. After the long battle ended, the remaining soldiers of King Dedede went over to them and Kirby dropped the copy ability.

"Meta-Knight, thanks for saving us from certain doom. How can the Castle Guard of Dedede ever repay you for your services?" Charles stated as he gave a courteous bow to the veteran swordsman.

"No thanks are necessary. We just wanted to do the right thing. That is all." Meta-Knight replied.

Will looked at Meta-Knight with shiny eyes. "Meta-Knight! And Kirby too! The living legends themselves! I never thought I'd live to see this day!" Will exclaimed.

Meta-Knight chuckled at the words. "Living legend now, is it?"

King Dedede then marched towards Meta-Knight's legion. Meta-Knight looked at the man who he once swore loyalty to. King Dedede didn't look too amused, but even he offered his hand.

"Thanks fer reinforcing us, Meta-Knight. I hate ta say it, but if it weren't fer ya, we probably would've been done for." King Dedede thanked. Meta-Knight nodded and shook his hand. Meta-Knight turned and was about to head back when he heard Dedede once more.

"Wait a sec, Meta-Knight. What should we do if those fiends come back again?"

Meta-Knight pondered on the thought. "I'm not sure what to say, your highness. The ones that retreated are probably long gone by now."

Dedede frowned. "Then what should we do?"

"Sorry, your majesty, but I really don't know. I'm going back to my fortress. Come, comrades." Meta-Knight concluded as he started walking back to his castle, until Kirby went over to him and tugged on his cloak.

"Do you want to come too, Kirby?" Meta-Knight asked. Kirby nodded.

"Then go get on your Warpstar and head towards my castle. We'll be there shortly." Kirby nodded and ran towards his vehicle and flew it towards Meta-Knight's castle.

King Dedede and the remaining warriors of his castle walked back towards the castle. As Dedede sat in his throne, he pondered. What were those things? Why did they attack his castle? How was he going to prepare himself for the next attack? However, the answers to these questions never came around as he slowly drifted himself to sleep…

"So, how did the attack go? It was successful, yes?" A mysterious figure asked another figure. They were inside a very dark room with very little light from torches, inside a palace or some place like this, one could not tell from the inside.

"The attack on Dedede's castle was unsuccessful, thanks to Meta-Knight's interference." replied the other figure.

"I see… In other words, you didn't retrieve the artifact either."

"That's right."

The first figure shook his fist in anger, and glared at the other with crimson red eyes. "How many times must I tell you that I don't want to see failure! I want ONLY success! Do you understand!"

"Yes, sir… However, we do have good news. We now know that the successor of Dark Matter is with Meta-Knight…"

"You mean Crystallis?"

"None other."

"That's good news, indeed. I'd like you to plan an attack that'll lure Meta-Knight and his companions towards us, so we can take back what rightfully belongs to us."

"Yes, of course." The other figure turned around and walked off. The mysterious figure the remained that remained threw back his cloak to reveal himself as Darksol, the black armored Sword Knight who originally served under Rash, a cold-hearted Waddle Dee who originally served Dark Matter, now dead due to the events of a few years back, when they were searching for the legendary Star Stones in hopes of being able to strengthen Dark Matter's powers, which failed miserably, as he remembered.

Darksol softly laughed to himself as he remembered that time when he first confronted the pair. How he lost to those fools. How his past leader gone insane because of them. "Meta-Knight, Crystallis… I'll finally get my revenge on you two for humiliating me in the past… It's about time I've paid you back… What would you sacrifice to save your precious student from the inevitable, eh Meta-Knight? I'll be sure to make your death as slow and painful as possible." Darksol then laughed evilly as he then walked towards his quarters to think of a clever scheme to capture Crystallis.

A/N: So, Darksol from Meta-Knight's Apprentice makes a return! What will happen next in this little story of mine? You'll just have to wait until later! Expect chapter 2 soon as well. I'm off to do other things. (disappears)


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: This one chapter doesn't have too much action until the end. While it's not necessarily a boring chapter, there's defiantly not as much action as the last chapter. I kind of have writer's block right as for what to do for Darksol's scheme, but I'll pull out of it, I'm sure of it. Anyway, onto the next chapter.

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Rise of Dark Matter

Chapter 2

Meta-Knight and his group of warriors had just returned to the fortress at Orange Ocean. All of the soldiers were relieved of their duties when Meta-Knight returned and they finally got some sleep. However Meta-Knight; along with Bio Spark, Kirby, and Chris; stayed awake and each knew they would not get much, if any, sleep at all that night. Meta-Knight glanced at his companions. Bio Spark was getting himself a cup of water to drink and Kirby and Chris were sitting on the sofa, silently waiting for something to happen. It was uncomfortably quite inside Meta-Knight's office.

"Chris and Kirby, I'd like you two to get some sleep. You're both still young and need some rest." Meta-Knight suddenly stated. Then the room fell back into silence. Kirby rose up, nodded, and left the room towards the guest quarters. Chris sighed as he too rose from his seat…

"Chris, I'd like to ask you something." Meta-Knight stated once more.

Chris looked at his former teacher, "Yes, sir?"

"…no, it's nothing. You may go."

Chris shrugged and then quietly left the room, closing the door behind him. After about five minutes passed by, Meta-Knight and Bio Spark exchanged looks.

"What troubles you, sir?" Bio Spark asked as he took a sip of water.

"…Those creatures earlier. They are nothing like anything we fought before… I fear that Dark Matter's awakening is upon us…" Meta-Knight replied.

"They were probably servants of Dark Matter. If that's the case, we could be in for another war…"

"I'm quite sure you're right, but why would they, of all places, attack Castle Dedede? What value could it have to make them attack such a place? It just doesn't make sense."

There was another moment of complete silence. After about eight minutes of pondering, Bio Spark asked, "May I make a suggestion, sir?"

"Go ahead."

"Perhaps Dedede is hiding something there? Like some sort of artifact or something?"

Meta-Knight pondered about this possibility for a moment. That seemed like a reasonable suggestion. After all, Dedede did happen to take all kinds of things all the time, simply because he liked how it looked or some other kind of excuse. Meta-Knight concluded with this possibility being very likely. "That's a good idea, Bio Spark… We'll look into this tomorrow; we should try to get some shut eye while we still can."

"That's reasonable. Good night, sir." Bio Spark then left the room to go to his quarters. Meta-Knight continued to seat in his chair and slowly drifted off into sleep.

The morning sun rose up halfway through the ocean, appearing as if the sun had just woken up from its sleep underneath the ocean waters. Chris was in one of the guest chambers, stretching and yawning as he rose from the comfortable bed. Chris looked at the room he was inside of; there was a sturdy wooden table near the window with three wooden chairs nearby. There was also a large cabinet to left side of the bed, probably filled with morning robes and such, which never had been a favorite of Chris's. As he rose, he immediately slipped on his headband, which was on a small bureau to his right. After fitting on his headband, he started to slip onto his other equipment; his set of armor, his gloves, and his two swords. After he made sure everything fit correctly, Chris walked over to the door and opened it, while slipping on his green mantle. He started walking towards the cafeteria, wondering what was for breakfast. Upon reaching the cafeteria, he noticed that it was quite crowded, which never failed to surprise Chris. He then walked up to the counter where the chefs where and asked for a typical breakfast, which consisted of toast, bacon, and some potato wedges. The chef, a Mace Knight (in full armor) with an apron and chef hat on top of his head, gave him his requested meal and served the others behind Chris. Chris walked towards a table that held the additional toppings; such as salt, pepper, and ketchup, and Chris dumped a little bit of ketchup on an empty area of his plate, grabbed the salt and shook it for awhile. Chris sat down and he then noticed something. Meta-Knight wasn't around the cafeteria. In fact, he hadn't run into anytime during the morning. Chris shrugged, figuring it was no big deal. He then noticed Colonel Dee running by, getting himself some breakfast, and then he ran around, trying to find a spot to sit. Chris then waved to the Waddle Dee, and he then ran towards him.

"Thanks for offering a seat. Nobody seems to want to seat with me at all!" Colonel Dee stated as he fixed his hat and sat down and began nibbling on his food, at least that's how it appeared to Chris.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Chris asked the colonel. Colonel Dee looked up at Chris, acknowledging his question.

"What is it?"

"I've been wondering how you guys can eat and talk. Since, you know, you don't have a mouth and all…"

Colonel Dee than put one of his stubby hands on his 'chin', pondering on this thought. "You know, that's a good question! I never really thought about it before!" he said and gave a little laugh afterwards. He was about to say something else when all of a sudden…

"Kirby's coming! Hide your plates, mates!" yelled a panicked Axe Knight. Everyone then entered a sudden state of panic and confusion as the pink puffball emerged into the large room. He quickly ran towards the chef, pushing anyone unfortunate enough to be in the way aside. The now panicked chef didn't ask for what Kirby wanted as he gave him a dish made up of all the different kinds of food in the cafeteria. Kirby, satisfied, walked off towards Chris's table. Chris could see the chef swiping a sweat off his brow, and Chris made a light laugh at the comical sight. Kirby sat himself next to Chris and began gobbling on his food. Everyone in the cafeteria watched Kirby eat; some were amused, while some were simply horrified as they hoped Kirby wouldn't ask for more. Colonel Dee watched in amazement as Kirby made a mess of his face as he ate his food, as the colonel ate his own food. Chris simply ignored Kirby as he continued eating his food. After a minute, Kirby finished eating and placed a hand on his belly, satisfied. Everyone in the room gave a huge sigh of relief as they resumed eating their breakfast.

"I cannot believe someone so small like Kirby has such a large appetite." the colonel stated as he munched on his breakfast. Chris chuckled after the colonel's statement.

"He's usually a lot worse than that." Chris replied. The colonel laughed as well. They both then finished their breakfast and Colonel Dee took the three plates and brought them to the chef, as Chris wiped Kirby's now sloppy face with a napkin he picked up earlier. Colonel Dee ran back over to Chris.

"Thanks again for having breakfast with me. I have duties to attend to, so farewell." The colonel than ran off quickly. Chris and Kirby also took their leave as they walked onto the battlements of the fortress. It was a pretty view; the ocean looked really sparkly as the water reflected the light of the sun. It reminded Chris of staring at a clear starry night sky. Kirby gazed in amazement at the wide ocean.

He must think it's pretty too, Chris thought to himself. He found it hard to believe that those demonic creatures attacked Castle Dedede the other day.

"I see that you two are enjoying the view," Meta-Knight appeared behind Chris and Kirby; he stepped in between them as he too gazed at the ocean. For some reason, however, Chris didn't think he was actually staring at the ocean. Meta-Knight had something on his mind, he could tell.

"What are you doing out here, sir?" Chris said. Meta-Knight looked at Chris for awhile.

"Something's been bothering me lately. I wanted to concentrate on what I should do about it."

Chris nodded. He saw it in his eyes as well. Something was defiantly bugging Meta-Knight. Chris couldn't quite lay his finger on what was bothering him, though. Perhaps it was about the attack yesterday? Or was it something else entirely? He couldn't tell. But he knew he had to do something about it. Should he ask what's bothering him?

"What's troubling you, sir?" Chris asked.

Meta Knight didn't reply right away. Perhaps he was thinking of what to say to him. "…The attack last night. I don't understand why those…things attacked Castle Dedede. I'm going to visit there later today to get some answers. You are welcome to accompany me."

"I'd be honored to accompany you, sir." Chris replied. Kirby also nodded and jumped in excitement, like a young child eager to go to the park.

"Thanks, I'd appreciate the company." Meta Knight concluded, smiling underneath his mask, and then began walking back inside the fortress. The smile soon faded away as he resumed his troubling thoughts.

Should I tell him what I think they attacked for…? Meta Knight pondered to himself. He knew one thing; if those were servants of Dark Matter, then Crystallis was no longer safe here. What should he do…? Chris would have to know of this troubling news sometime soon, though. Meta Knight sighed in aggravation, having not the slightest idea of what to do for his old student. He then remembered why he came out here in the first place and guided Crystallis and Kirby towards the entrance of the fortress. Meta Knight told the gatekeeper where he was going and the usual "don't let anyone besides me and those accompanying me inside the castle" and then the trio departed towards Castle Dedede.

"Come on! Put your back into it, Will!" Charles shouted to the new recruit. The two were outside of Castle Dedede, sparring with wooden swords. Will didn't really know how to use a sword, so he just dashed and slashed at the veteran soldier. Charles was too quick, however, and simply stepped to the side and watched the helpless Waddle Dee fall on his face.

"You need to place the element of surprise into all different kinds of battles, Will! I saw several openings in your attack pattern that I could have easily turned to my advantage!" Charles explained to Will. Will rose onto his feet, grabbed his cap and placed it back on top of his head, and gripped the oak blade tightly with both of his stubby hands. He looked in determination at the man he always admired. He got himself into a battle pose and charged again. Charles expected Will to just run at him again, so he got himself ready. He then sidestepped again and noticed that Will was not on the ground near him. Then he felt something fall onto his back and struggled to stay on. Charles, although surprised by the different attack, easily grabbed the recruit and Charles slammed the poor Waddle Dee onto the ground, on top of his back. It wasn't a very hard slam, but it was enough for Will to lose his breath. The only thing Will could do was just lie still on the grassy ground, moaning in pain. Charles offered the recruit his hand, and Will easily accepted it.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt ya." Charles apologized.

"Nah, it's alright. I need to get toughened up anyway." Will reply as he pulled himself back up, using Charles's hand to do so, and the Sword Knight lifted him off the ground, making sure that Will landed on his feet while doing so, and picked up the practice swords as Will tried to regain his breath.

"I must admit, I did not expect ya to jump onto my back like ya did. That was pretty impressive."

"Thanks, sir. I noticed how you always sidestepped in the same direction as I ran at you before, so I decided to try to use that to my advantage and try to defeat you that way, but you managed to get me off." Will laughed a little at how easily Charles countered that.

"Still though, you're quite something. A natural fighter, but you aren't at your full potential yet. You still need work in your movements. And you said you never used a sword before?"

"Nope, although I used to play with other kids with sticks, and pretended that we were in a swordfight. I usually won them." Will smiled as he reflected on his memories of his childhood. Charles smiled underneath his helmet, remembering his own similar childhood memories. He then walked over to Will and gave him one of the wooden practice blades, Will looked up to him.

"Just imagine yourself from back them, and give it all ya got against me." Charles stated, and walked back a few feet and stared at Will, waiting for his course of action. Will closed his eyes, reflecting back to his childhood memories. The times he used to play silly games with his friends, pretending to have sword fights using sticks. Will then remembered the first thing he'd always do; which was getting himself into a casual pose and pointing his "blade" at his opponent, in this case Charles, as if challenging him. Charles then dashed towards him, sword in hand. Will waited until Charles was close enough, and then he rolled to the side, catching Charles off guard as he attempted to stop running, but then Will dashed towards the veteran knight and slashed at Charles, but Charles was able to turn in time to lock blades. The two stared at each other for awhile, as they continued to lock blades. Charles broke the lock and tackled Will, whom he unfortunately took; but Will was able to recover himself very quickly and readied himself for the next attack. Will dashed towards Charles and executed a dropkick, which accurately hit Charles in the chest. Charles was flung backwards from the blow, but he was far from done. Charles quickly got back onto his feet and slide towards Will's feet, which Charles's legs locked onto, and quickly flipped Will onto the ground, slamming him into the soft grass. Will and Charles then engaged into an intense swordfight after they got back onto their feet. The two stroked with so much power, that the practice blades began to chip and crack as they swung and parried each attack. The two fighters didn't even seem to notice or care about the condition of their weapons, just the intensity of the battle as they clashed wood to wood. The two warriors then jumped back and breathed heavily. The two then ran towards each other and swung their blades with amazing force, and then there was a mighty crack as the blades connected. The two just stood there for awhile, and then the blades of both practice weapons fell from the sky. Will looked at the now broken weapon that was in his hand, and stared at Charles, who also wielded a broken wooden sword. The two laughed as they realized the fight was so intense that the blades snapped. During the laugh, they heard claps and cheers from the audience. Charles and Will looked and saw that Meta-Knight, Crystallis, and Kirby were watching the duel the whole time.

"Excellent sword play back there," Meta-Knight stated as he applauded. "I wouldn't want to find myself fighting the two of you."

Charles laughed "So the great Meta Knight watched the great sword battle! Glad that you were entertained from the sword training match."

"Ha! That was training? I cannot even imagine how well you'd perform in actual battle!" Crystallis commented, noting the intensity of the dual.

Will quickly gazed away from the trio, as if embarrassed from the comments. Did I really do that well, he thought to himself. He then felt Charles giving him a hearty pat on the back.

"That was a great match, Will! I hope to be able to spar with you again sometime."

Will chuckled softly as Charles complimented him. "Thank you, sir! I'm looking forward to our next match!" Charles gave Will a nod, smiling underneath the helmet, as he picked up the broken sword pieces and walked back towards the castle. Meta-Knight and Kirby gave him their regards and followed Charles. As Crystallis walked by him, he stopped and took a look at Will.

"Where did you learn to wield a sword like that?"

Will laughed, "I remembered how I used to play with my friends when I was younger and remembered how we used to pretend we were knights and had a sword dual, and I thought like how I would then!" He sounded very proud of himself as he said this statement.

"Is that so? I'd liked to face you someday!" Crystallis mentioned as he gave a courteous bow and ran to catch up with his companions. Will hurried after them too as they reached the castle gates.

A/N: I kind of like this chapter, for some reason. It gives more character depth to the cast, especially Will and Charles, at least that what I thought when I proofread it. Anyway, comment if you wish to. Remember, I'd love to hear any constructive criticism for this story or any other future projects (whoever's reading this must be sick of me saying this, but I'd really like to hear how I could improve my writing). Well, comment if you want to. As for me, I'll be off doing other stuff. Later. (disappears)


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: Ehh... I'm having a difficult time trying to stay interested with the story. Maybe it's because I'm not writing too much action right now, but I hope that you'll be interested with this chapter for now. I also don't plan on letting this story die early.

Also, there are several swears in this chapter, along with refrences to alchol and smoking. I'll increase the rating to M, in case, you know, those kind of things aren't really accepted in T rated stories.

Anyways, onto chapter 3...

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Rise of Dark Matter

Chapter 3

Meta-Knight, along with Kirby, Crystallis, and Will, followed Sir Charles as he led them towards Dedede's throne room. As they walked down the halls, Sir Charles turned towards Meta-Knight.

"May I ask what kind of urgent business you have with His Highness?" Charles asked.

"I've been concerned about that attack last night. Why would they attack Castle Dedede, of all places?" Meta-Knight replied and Charles nodded in agreement.

"That's been bugging me too, mate. Nothing ever came by that was unusual, and I know that there is nothing of possible value to those creatures in this castle."

"Are you certain? What about the treasury?"

"I'm the captain of the Castle Guard; it's my duty to make sure that the castle is safe and sound, along with its treasures. And as far as I know, there is nothing we haven't seen anything unusual around here."

Meta-Knight was now more concerned about the matter as he thought more about it. He was at one time employed under King Dedede, and he remembers nothing of that sort ever around either, but that was many years ago. He knew that things change along with the times, but he couldn't help but think that something was missing.

"Something bugging you, sir?" Crystallis asked as he placed a hand on Meta-Knight's shoulder.

"It's nothing, Chris." Meta-Knight replied as he didn't want Chris to worry over something like this either. The group continued to walk down the halls as they searched for Dedede's throne room.

In a town nearby, Kage sat in a bar, drinking a bottle of alcohol and smoking a nearly entire lit cigarette. He is similar to Kirby in appearance, being a puffball creature himself, except he was a brownish color instead of pink. He fancied a red headband and wore tan shoes as well.

"I'd like another drink," Kage stated to the barkeeper, a Waddle Dee in a suit. The Waddle Dee nodded and dashed towards where all of the back, where all of the alcoholic drinks were, but then went back a little bit.

"What do you want?"

"Whiskey on the rocks." Kage replied to the Waddle Dee. The Waddle Dee looked somewhat confused, but he quickly prepared the alcoholic beverage for the brown puffball. There was a green bugzzy seating beside Kage.

"Hey, Cid." Kage greeted as he puffed out some of the cigarette smoke.

"Yo, Kage." Cid replied as he asked for a beer. "I see that you didn't quit smoking, as usual."

"Who the hell cares?" replied Kage as squished the cigarette stub into a nearby ashtray. "I've been smoking for fuckin' three years, and I ain't dead yet."

The barkeeper came back with a bottle of beer and a mug of whisky, which he gave to each and quickly went to serve another customer.

Kage looked at his whiskey, as he quickly realized that the Waddle Dee actually put rocks into his mug of alcohol, and he sighed in aggravation.

"Fuckin' idiot..." Kage cursed softly as he drank the whiskey anyway. "What kind of a bartender does not know what 'whiskey on the rocks' means?"

Cid shrugged, "Cut him some slack, man. He didn't even have to give you that whiskey."

Kage gave out another sigh, "If he didn't give me that whiskey, he'd lose his fuckin' job for not serving the fuckin' customer!"

Cid could tell that Kage was in a fowl mood, and he wanted to stop the argument before it became ugly, "Alright, whatever."

Kage and Cid finished drinking, payed for their beverages, and started to leave the tavern. Until something caught Kage's eye, a fight inside the bar! Kage dashed towards it and joined in the fury of punches and kicks. Cid gave a glance at the bartender, who tried to protest towards the people fighting, but his words fell on deaf ears as he went to fetch something underneath the counter, and it was actually a shotgun.

"If you don't stop that fighting right now, there WILL be several fatalities!" the bartender shouted in anger as he pointed the firearm towards the area where there was fighting. Everyone, even the clearly drunk customers, stopped what they were doing and sat back down in silence. Kage walked back towards Cid.

"At least he knows how to deal with fights." Kage said, obviously somewhat disappointed.

"Well, let's go already." Cid replied. The two walked away from the bar and walked around town.

"Hey, aren't ya one of those Castle Guard chumps now?" Kage asked, sounding rather rude, but Cid knew him better than anyone else.

"Yeah, I work at the Castle Guard now. The pay's pretty good, and I like the guys there." Cid replied. "Why, you thinking about joining?"

Kage seemed to look somewhat interested in the offer, but he let it down anyway, "Nah, that's just not for me. Although I did hear that there was a big fight last night."

Cid nodded, "There was a fight last night, yes."

"Whacca fight?"

Cid placed a hand on chin, as if trying to remember, or describe, what exactly they fought. He didn't really know how to describe them.

"Well? Was it goons?"

"No, they were like demons or something…"

"Are you fuckin' serious? Demons again?"

Cid looked at him, "You've heard of other stories?"

"Damn right, I've heard a shit load of other stories like that. Course, I never believed that crap, but if they attacked here too…"

Cid looked at his friend, as if looking for an answer.

Kage slammed his fist into his other hand, "That must mean that they are pretty strong, right? Then I'd like to face some of those suckas."

"Are you going to join the Castle Guard then?"

"Fuck that shit. No offense, but I'm going to find them and face them all myself."

"Well, the king is probably going to organize a party to find them. It might be easier to join them, if he does decide to form one anyway."

Kage grinned at his friend, as he lit himself another cigarette. "Alright then, let's get goin'!"

The two friends then walked towards Castle Dedede.

"WHAT! Are ya accusin' me of taking somethin' of value of them freaks that attacked hea last night!" Dedede yelled, throwing a tantrum much like a selfish child.

"I'm _not_ accusing you of anything, your highness." Meta-Knight replied, trying to keep his patience with the king. "I'm only asking you if you have anything like that, since I see no other reason why those demonic creatures attacked last night."

"And I've told you that I ain't got nothin' of that sort 'round hea! Do you understand me, Meta-Knight?"

Meta-Knight quickly figured that the king was lying; he knew how much he lied about these kind of things better than most. "I hate to tell you this, your highness, but I don't believe you. I will need some proof of this."

"Ya want some proof? Then look everywhere ya want! Ya'll find nothin' of that sort 'round hea!" Dedede yelled angrily as he sat back onto his throne. Meta-Knight sighed as he turned to leave, as he met back with his companions. Dedede continued to sit there, thinking.

Why did Meta-Knight think I had somethin' like that 'round hea? Maybe I'll gather a search team to find anythang like that, Dedede thought to himself.

Meta-Knight was back outside the throne room, looking at his companions, shaking his head at the group of four.

"It's no use, he doesn't seem to know of anything that could interest them." Meta-Knight stated.

"He may not know of it, but something like that could very well be hidden inside the castle. We should investigate this." Charles suggested.

"That's a good idea, Sir Charles. We should check the entire castle to find whatever could interest those demonic creatures."

"Hold up one damn minute."

The group turned and looked at Cid and Kage, who happened to hear the conversation so far.

"Just what the hell happened? I'd like a good explanation." Kage asked, talking with a cigarette in his mouth.

Meta-Knight, although somewhat surprised by their presense and even more confused about Kage's presense, explained to Kage the reason why he was here.

"Ah, so you're gonna leave every stone unturned until you find anything that could interest those demonic bastards that attacked here yesterday."

Meta-Knight nodded, "That's the plan, but may I ask just who you are?"

Kage puffed out some cigarette smoke as he began to introduce himself. "The name's Kage, and don't you forget it!" Meta-Knight already didn't like Kage, mainly because of his rude and cruddy behavior.

"I'm Meta-Knight, and these all my companions, Crystallis and Kirby. He's the captain of the Castle Guard, Sir Charles, and that's a member of the Castle Guard, Will."

Kage looked at them all; he's heard of some of them in some way. Kirby and Meta-Knight, he knew, were the heroes that ended the war with Dark Matter, and Charles was a well-known and highly-respected warrior of this region. He didn't know who the other two, Crystallis and Will, were, but he really didn't care. He dropped the cigarette stub onto the floor and stepped on it with his left foot.

"How do you two know each other?" Charles asked.

"Kage and I used to be sparring partners back in the old days. We used join fighting tournaments, and win them!" Cid replied.

"Until this sissy decided to join the Castle Guard." Kage stated. "But enough of that introduction crap, let's get started." Kage then walked forward, shoving Will to the side in the process. Charles lifted up Will and placed him back on his feet, while glaring at Kage's back.

The entire group looked at Cid, almost somewhat angerly. Cid looked at the group, and shrugged, "He might be fowl-mouthed and a little rude, but he's actually a nice guy deep down inside him."

"Maybe so, but I don't like his attitude at all." Charles replied rather bluntly.

The group then began searching the entire castle to find what they are looking for, but just what is it that they are looking for, and does this object even exist?

Darksol stood on the balcony of the ruined palace that is his headquarters. The wind blew his mantle towards the left of him, onto a railing, as he looked at the world. His loyal servant, a white and red garbed ninja named Hydra, submerged from the door behind Darksol.

"How fares the reconstruction of the Shadow Saber?" Darksol asked Hydra.

"Thing are going well with the Shadow Saber. We already have the basic shape and materials ready. All we need now is an alchemist and the artifact inside Castle Dedede to make it." Hydra replied.

Darksol growled softly, remembering Hydra's failure to capture the item last night, but he dropped the subject form his mind quickly. Even the best of men make mistakes sometimes. "But we do have an alchemist in mind, don't we?"

"We already found him, if that's what you mean. Reveal yourself!"

A dark blue Kirby like creature submerged. He wore a pair of glasses, along with a black long coat and matching gloves. He also wore a brimmed leather hat. "I'm Alan, pleased to meet you all." He greeted as he grinned at the two men.

Darksol already didn't like this man, he was too easygoing. And this is an alchemist? He looked like something from the streets. Well, he didn't care, as long as they found someone. "I'm Darksol, and this is my most trusted servant, Hydra." Hydra nodded in reposance.

"So, what is it that you two want me to do?" Alan asked, looking more serious now.

"Well, we'd like you to recreate our Shadow Saber and Celestial Body for us. But, the problem with that is that we don't have Kuragima, the Demon Scythe, that'll modify your abilities to the level you'll need to recreate them as we'd like them too. Doing such a thing without the Kuragima could be... disastrous."

Alan then looked at Darksol. "The Shadow Saber and Celestial Body? From ancient legends? Even with Kuragima's powers, I'm not sure if I have that kind of power…"

Darksol started to grow impatient, but he tried to the best of his ability to keep what's left of his patience. "I'd like you to at least try, after we the get the scythe, of course."

Alan grinned once again. "Alright then, it'll take me awhile though if I were to succeed. All of those stories you've heard about alchemy taking only a matter of seconds are false. Creating effective weapons and armor is extremely difficult and takes quite some time. Unless you wanted useless pieces of crap for weapons and armor."

"I understand, I'll give you all the time you need after we have gained Kuragima. You may leave now." Darksol concluded, unitentional sounding impatient. Alan then left the room to begin reviewing his upcoming work.

"I already don't like this man." Darksol whispered to Hydra.

"Do not fear, we'll deal with him if he tries anything stupid." Hydra replied, unsheathing his black katana called Muramasa.

Darksol nodded. "Question what he's doing before you do anything, though. I don't want to sacrifice important things if those sacrifices were not needed."

"But of course, sir." Hydra then sheathed the blade and turned to leave.

Darksol looked back at the world around his headquarters. He laughed softly to himself.

"I'll let you off the hook for now, Crystallis, since I now know where you are. But tomorrow, I'll bring you back here… where you belong, along with Kuragima!" Darksol laughed evilly and then went back inside the dark palace.

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A/N: Still no action yet, but you are introduced to a few more characters. Anyway, I promise you action of some type on the next chapter, whenever it will be released. Anyway, comment if you want to. I'm off to do other things. (disappears)


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